FENNY K P Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All these writ petitions are connected. I shall refer to the parties and the exhibits in W.P. (C) No. 3996 of 2013 for the sake of convenience. The issue pertains to the preparation of seniority list under Health Service Quota for admission to Postgraduate Medical Courses, 2013. The relevant clause in Ext. P-2 Prospectus for admission to Medical Postgraduate Degree/Diploma Courses, 2013 issued by the Government of Kerala is extracted herein below:

(2.) A quick reference to the relevant provisions of the Kerala Medical Officers' Admission to Postgraduate Courses Under Service Quota Act, 2008 ('the Act' for short) is apposite. Section 6 of the Act is as follows:

(3.) Thus the Rules prescribe that a minimum of one year continuous service in rural area or difficult rural area is necessary to get weightage and that those who have more than one year service in such area will be given more weightage. True it is that Rule 8 (iii) of the Rules provides for sub-quota such as Rural Service Quota and Difficult Rural Area Quota as was followed by the Government of Kerala till last year. But Rule 8 (iv) clothes the Government with the power to continue or discontinue the sub-quotas and to resort to admissions on seniority basis by giving suitable weightage for service in rural areas and difficult rural areas. This has precisely been done by the Government of Kerala in Ext. P-2 Prospectus as regards Post-graduate admission under Health Service Quota which is a permissible exercise under the Act and the Rules framed thereunder.